Avoid getting scammed by fake account deactivation emails

What kind of email is "Request To Deactivate Your Email"?

"Request To Deactivate Your Email Account" is a phishing scam. This fake letter claims that the recipient's request to deactivate their email account has been received and will be processed. This spam mail aims to extract victims' log-in credentials as they attempt to stop the alleged deactivation.

"Request To Deactivate Your Email" scam overview

Spam email with the subject "(((FINAL WARNING)))" (may vary) states that a request to deactivate the recipient's mail account has been received. Within 24 hours, the email and all associated data will be deleted from the provider's servers – thus permanently deactivating the account. If the recipient did not make this request and/or wishes to cancel it – they are instructed to press the button presented in this letter.

It must be stressed that all these claims are false, and this mail is in no way associated with any genuine service providers.

At the time of research, clicking the "CANCEL REQUEST NOW" button resulted in a redirect to a dead webpage. The site was likely intended to operate as a phishing page. Most scams of this kind push websites disguised as email account sign-in pages. Attempts to log in through these fake websites expose the provided account credentials.

It must be mentioned that potential future "Request To Deactivate Your Email" campaigns could redirect to fully operational phishing sites.

The risks associated with this kind of spam mail exceed the loss of an email. These accounts are commonly used to register other content – hence, cyber criminals might gain access to it through a stolen email.

To elaborate on the potential misuse, finance-related accounts (e.g., online banking, money transferring, e-commerce, cryptowallets, etc.) can be used to make unauthorized transactions and online purchases.

Scammers can also steal the identities of social account owners (e.g., emails, social networking, messengers, etc.) and ask the contacts/friends/followers for loans or donations, promote scams, and proliferate malware by sharing malicious files/links.

Cyber criminals can also use confidential/compromising content obtained from hijacked data-storage accounts or similar platforms for blackmail or other nefarious purposes.

In summary, victims of spam mail like "Request To Deactivate Your Email" may experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and even identity theft.

If you have already entered your log-in credentials into a phishing website – immediately change the passwords of all potentially compromised accounts and inform their official support.

Threat Summary:

Name	"Request To Deactivate Your Email Account" spam email
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Fake Claim	Request was received to deactivate the recipient's email account.
Symptoms	Unauthorized online purchases, changed online account passwords, identity theft, illegal access of the computer.
Distribution methods	Deceptive emails, rogue online pop-up ads, search engine poisoning techniques, misspelled domains.
Damage	Loss of sensitive private information, monetary loss, identity theft.
Malware Removal (Windows)	To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. ▼ Download Combo Cleaner To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

Spam campaigns in general

"Queued Messages Notification", "Security Risk For Your Email", and "Important Security Notice" are just a couple examples of phishing emails we have investigated recently.

These letters most commonly target log-in credentials (i.e., email addresses, IDs, usernames, passwords, passphrases, etc.), personally identifiable details (e.g., ID card data, passport photos/scans, etc.), and finance-related information (e.g., banking account details, credit card numbers, etc.).

Spam mail is used to facilitate various scams, such as phishing, sextortion, callback, tech support, inheritance, lottery, and so forth. Furthermore, deceptive emails are utilized in malware distribution.

While this mail is infamous for its grammatical and spelling errors, it may be competently disguised as messages from legitimate service providers, companies, organizations, authorities, or other entities.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Spam mail spreads malware by distributing malicious files. They can be attached to the emails/messages or linked inside them (i.e., links leading to websites that stealthily infiltrate malware or trick visitors into downloading/installing it themselves).

Virulent files come in various formats, e.g., archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (.exe, .run, etc.), documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), JavaScript, and so on. Once such a file is opened – the malware download/installation chain is initiated.

However, some formats may need additional user interaction to jumpstart infection processes. For example, Microsoft Office documents require users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote files need them to click on embedded files or links.

How to avoid installation of malware?

It is paramount to exercise caution with incoming emails, DMs/PMs, SMSes, and other messages. We advise against opening attachments or links found in suspicious/irrelevant mail, as they can be infectious.

We recommend using Microsoft Office versions released after 2010 since they have the "Protected View" mode that prevents automatic macro command execution.

It is noteworthy that malware is not proliferated exclusively through spam mail. Therefore, we also advise being careful while browsing, as fake and dangerous online content usually appears legitimate and harmless.

Furthermore, all downloads must be performed from official and verified channels. Another recommendation is to activate and update software using functions/tools provided by genuine developers, as illegal activation ("cracking") tools and third-party updates can contain malware.

We must emphasize the importance of having a dependable anti-virus installed and kept up-to-date. Security programs must be used to run regular system scans and to remove threats/issues. If you've already opened malicious attachments, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.

Text presented in the "Request To Deactivate Your Email" spam letter:

Subject: (((FINAL WARNING)))

 

********
We just received your request to deactivate your email account listed below.

Your email is:   ********

After 24 hours, all email data associated with your account will be deleted from our servers and your account will be permanently deactivated.

If you did not make this request, Kindly use the below link to cancel and continue using our services.
    
CANCEL REQUEST NOW

Thank you for helping us keep your account safe.

******** Service Security

© 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Instant automatic malware removal: Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:
▼ DOWNLOAD Combo Cleaner By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

Quick menu:

• What is "Request To Deactivate Your Email Account" spam email?
• Types of malicious emails.
• How to spot a malicious email?
• What to do if you fell for an email scam?

Types of malicious emails:

Phishing Emails

Most commonly, cybercriminals use deceptive emails to trick Internet users into giving away their sensitive private information, for example, login information for various online services, email accounts, or online banking information.

Such attacks are called phishing. In a phishing attack, cybercriminals usually send an email message with some popular service logo (for example, Microsoft, DHL, Amazon, Netflix), create urgency (wrong shipping address, expired password, etc.), and place a link which they hope their potential victims will click on.

After clicking the link presented in such email message, victims are redirected to a fake website that looks identical or extremely similar to the original one. Victims are then asked to enter their password, credit card details, or some other information that gets stolen by cybercriminals.

Emails with Malicious Attachments

Another popular attack vector is email spam with malicious attachments that infect users' computers with malware. Malicious attachments usually carry trojans that are capable of stealing passwords, banking information, and other sensitive information.

In such attacks, cybercriminals' main goal is to trick their potential victims into opening an infected email attachment. To achieve this goal, email messages usually talk about recently received invoices, faxes, or voice messages.

If a potential victim falls for the lure and opens the attachment, their computers get infected, and cybercriminals can collect a lot of sensitive information.

While it's a more complicated method to steal personal information (spam filters and antivirus programs usually detect such attempts), if successful, cybercriminals can get a much wider array of data and can collect information for a long period of time.

Sextortion Emails

This is a type of phishing. In this case, users receive an email claiming that a cybercriminal could access the webcam of the potential victim and has a video recording of one's masturbation.

To get rid of the video, victims are asked to pay a ransom (usually using Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency). Nevertheless, all of these claims are false - users who receive such emails should ignore and delete them.

How to spot a malicious email?

While cyber criminals try to make their lure emails look trustworthy, here are some things that you should look for when trying to spot a phishing email:

• Check the sender's ("from") email address: Hover your mouse over the "from" address and check if it's legitimate. For example, if you received an email from Microsoft, be sure to check if the email address is @microsoft.com and not something suspicious like @m1crosoft.com, @microsfot.com, @account-security-noreply.com, etc.
• Check for generic greetings: If the greeting in the email is "Dear user", "Dear @youremail.com", "Dear valued customer", this should raise suspiciousness. Most commonly, companies call you by your name. Lack of this information could signal a phishing attempt.
• Check the links in the email: Hover your mouse over the link presented in the email, if the link that appears seems suspicious, don't click it. For example, if you received an email from Microsoft and the link in the email shows that it will go to firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0... you shouldn't trust it. It's best not to click any links in the emails but to visit the company website that sent you the email in the first place.
• Don't blindly trust email attachments: Most commonly, legitimate companies will ask you to log in to their website and to view any documents there; if you received an email with an attachment, it's a good idea to scan it with an antivirus application. Infected email attachments are a common attack vector used by cybercriminals.

To minimise the risk of opening phishing and malicious emails we recommend using Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows. 

Example of a spam email:

What to do if you fell for an email scam?

• If you clicked on a link in a phishing email and entered your password - be sure to change your password as soon as possible. Usually, cybercriminals collect stolen credentials and then sell them to other groups that use them for malicious purposes. If you change your password in a timely manner, there's a chance that criminals won't have enough time to do any damage.
• If you entered your credit card information - contact your bank as soon as possible and explain the situation. There's a good chance that you will need to cancel your compromised credit card and get a new one.
• If you see any signs of identity theft - you should immediately contact the Federal Trade Commission. This institution will collect information about your situation and create a personal recovery plan.
• If you opened a malicious attachment - your computer is probably infected, you should scan it with a reputable antivirus application. For this purpose, we recommend using Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows.
• Help other Internet users - report phishing emails to Anti-Phishing Working Group, FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, National Fraud Information Center and U.S. Department of Justice.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why did I receive this email?

Spam emails are not personal. This email is sent in massive operations – therefore, thousands of users receive identical messages.

I have provided my personal information when tricked by this spam email, what should I do?

If you have provided your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all potentially exposed accounts and inform their official support without delay. And if you've disclosed information of a different personal nature (e.g., ID card details, passport photos/scans, credit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact relevant authorities.

I have read a spam email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?

System infections are triggered when malicious attachments or links are opened/clicked; merely reading an email is not enough to jumpstart these processes.

I have downloaded and opened a file attached to a spam email, is my computer infected?

Whether your device was infected might depend on the opened file's format. If it was an executable (.exe, .run, etc.) – most likely, yes. However, you might have avoided an infection if it was a document (.doc, .xls, .pdf, .one, etc.). These formats may require extra actions to start downloading/installing malware (e.g., enabling macro commands, clicking embedded content, etc.).

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Yes, Combo Cleaner can detect and eliminate practically all known malware infections. It must be stressed that running a complete system scan is essential – since high-end malicious software typically hides deep within systems.

▼ Show Discussion